DVD Zone: September 2009
I Love You, Man
Warner Bros.
Face it guys, we’ve all been there. The wife or girlfriend states her desire to stay in and watch a movie. Out of some sort of supposed kindness, she lets you offer up a token suggestion or two as to what might be on the bill for the evening. This, of course, is a ruse, and you realize with a deepening sense of blackness and despair that no matter what you offer up, you’re gonna spend the next two hours in front of the latest Matthew McConaughey/Kate Hudson crapfest.
How about suggesting a dude-flick instead? They’re like chick-flicks, but with guys, and not to be confused with guy-films. No, guy-films are just as cliched and hackneyed as chick-flicks, but with all the things that appeal to the male lizard brain – lots of gun-play, car crashes, Megan Fox being spanked repeatedly – that sort of thing. The dude-flick doesn’t have anything like that, but they’re enjoyable none-the-less.
At the top of the heap is I Love You, Man. Paul Rudd plays Peter, an amiable dork about to be married to Rashida Jones’ Zooey. She is worried that Peter doesn’t really have any good male friends, he just relates better with women. And really, how can you have a wedding without a best man?
On Zooey’s suggestion, Peter begins a search to find a new best friend. After several disastrous blind “dates” (see, it’s just like a chick-flick!), he stumbles upon Sydney, a care-free slacker that likes to crash real estate open houses for the free food and seems to be exactly what Peter needs. Of course, as with all best laid plans, their friendship soon threatens to outweigh the engagement, as Peter spends more time with Sydney than with Zooey. They start a band, they go to Rush shows, they fight with Lou Ferrigno, all leading up to the typical chick-flick resolution.
While it all seems fairly standard, the strong cast makes it work. Jason Segel, who’s shown that he’ll go to any lengths to sell the joke in Forgetting Sarah Marshall, plays Sydney’s slacker-chic to perfection, and Rudd isn’t afraid to look foolish either. His attempts to be hip are both painful to watch and hilarious at the same time. Also scoring big are J.K. Simmons and Andy Samberg as Peter’s father and gay brother respectively.
The DVD features both deleted and extended scenes, Commentary by Rudd, Segel, and director John Hamburg, and a gag reel.
So guys, seriously. Don’t be afraid. You don’t have to endure the the trauma of the chick flick every time. The dude-flick provides the perfect stop-gap until the missus agrees to let you watch Die Hard again.
Film:*** Features: ***
Quincy Jones: The 75th Birthday Celebration Live At Montreux 2008
Eagle Eye Media
How often does it happen that an artist’s producer and mentor reaches the level of fame that lets his or her star power outshine the person they’re working with? Never.
Unless you’re Quincy Jones.
With 29 Grammys under his belt, remains one of the last true legends in the music biz. Having shaped the careers of Michael Jackson, Chaka Khan, Al Jarreau and countless others, it’s no surprise that on his 75th birthday the line to honor the Chicago-born impresario would be out the door.
The two-disc 75th Birthday Celebration features appearances by the likes of Khan and Jarreau, as well as Patti Austin, Herbie Hancock, Paolo Nutini and many more. Jones is regaled with versions of “Makin’ Whoopie,” “Smoke Gets In Your Eyes,” “The Dude,” and 29 others spanning his illustrious career.
The two-disc set looks and sounds terrific, and includes a behind the scenes look at the backstage action and rehearsals.
Film: *** Features: ***
Also available . . . The first season of Fox’s Lie To Me is out and about. Although television is currently swimming in a whole ocean of series’ featuring smarter-than-the-room investigators, Lie To Me stands out simply on the power of lead Tim Roth, who throughout his career has quite simply seemed incapable of turning in a bad performance.
— Timothy Hiatt
